GARFIELD — City officials will hold a ceremony tonight to dedicate a small stretch of road to a sailor killed in a tragic accident aboard a Navy watercraft in 2007.

Freddie Porter Jr., a Garfield native, was just 19 when the 24-foot inflatable boat he was riding on during a training exercise for the Navy's Seals unit collided with a tugboat on Virginia's James River.

Porter and two other sailors were thrown into the chilly October waters - they were quickly recovered and treated for injuries, but a search for Porter's body was unsuccessful.

According to Garfield's Community News, the city council approved a resolution last month to name a stretch of road between City Hall and Garfield High School after Porter. A garden outside the city's police station has already been created in his memory.

Porter's family won a $1.25 million judgement against the Navy and the owner of the tugboat for his death.

Last year, however, a federal appeals court overruled, freeing the Navy of its obligation for 80 percent of the settlement. The ruling against the tugboat's owner, Alabama-based Vulcan Materials Co., was upheld.

Tonight's ceremony is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Garfield City Hall, and will be followed by the annual tree lighting ceremony.